Right Here Waiting
by Fireyoukaigirl
Summary: This is the YuGiOh movie, plain and simple, but I've added an OC, Ebony Sharpe. She is Seto's Kaiba's closest friend and has been thrown into the middle of the duel for the world. Slight Seto/OC.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own YuGiOh or any of the characters. I also do NOT own the YuGiOh movie, which is what this whole story basically is, except I added another character into the mix. Don't worry, I keep everything as it happened in the movie. I worked really hard to make sure this OC couldn't be considered a Mary Sue.**

* * *

I stared ahead at the duel taking place before me. It was Yugi versus Seto, once again.

"Even _you_ must admit that your Blue Eyes White Dragon is powerless against my Egyptian God Cards," Yugi called across the arena.

"Make all the smug pronouncements you like, but know this. There's got to be a way to beat your God Cards and I won't stop until I find it," Seto answered, drawing a card from his deck.

Yugi, or Atem I should say, growled slightly.

'_My brother will win. He always does,'_ the spirit residing within me, Asenath, said in a bored tone.

'_Just watch. You never know,'_ I answered her.

"Now, I activate the magic card Polymerization! This allows me to fuse my three dragons together to form the Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon," Seto yelled.

He jumped onto one of the heads of the dragon and glared down at his opponent.

"And that's just for starters," he finished.

Yugi looked slightly worried that he might be in trouble and took a half-step back.

'_See, Asenath. He's got Atem on the ropes,'_ I mentally told the spirit.

'_Keep watching,'_ she reminded me.

"Next I activate a magic card that doubles my dragon's attack points: Mega-morph," Seto continued.

The Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon grew in size, destroying the stone wall surrounding the two duelists.

"Now my Blue Eyes is more powerful than any monster on the field!"

"There's more to power than just attack points," Yugi answered, causing Seto to give a wry laugh.

"And just what is that supposed to mean," my close friends asked.

"It means my Egyptian God Cards possess powers far beyond mere monsters!"

"They what?!"

"By sacrificing two of them, I can bestow upon the third infinite strength!"

Yugi sacrificed his Slifer the Sky Dragon and Winged Dragon of Ra to give his Obelisk the Tormentor more power. The bright light caused Seto to take a step back.

"They're melding, pooling their energy," Seto yelled in astonishment.

Yugi jumped onto Obelisk's shoulder, ready for his attack.

"Now my Obelisk the Tormentor is the strongest monster in play," he called.

"No! I can beat your God cards. I won't lose to you again!"

"Obelisk the Tormentor, show him what true power is all about! Attack with Fist of Fury!"

The attacks raged, Obelisk's Fist of Fury clashing with the Blue Eyes Ultimate's triple beam. The result was a light bright enough to put the sun to shame. Obelisk's attack started to prevail, though.

"No," Seto yelled. "My dragon!"

The Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon was destroyed, causing Seto to lose the duel, yet again.

"System overload, system overload," a computer voice repeated.

"The simulation is malfunctioning," one of Kaiba Corp.'s top mathematicians yelled in surprise.

'_You were right,'_ I inwardly muttered.

'_With the Egyptian Gods, my brother is almost unstoppable,'_ Asenath answered, still uninterested.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Kaiba but I was certain that our calculations were correct this time, sir," the man continued.

"If you'd just give us one more chance, sir," another man pleaded.

"So you can fail again? Sorry," Seto answered harshly.

"Please, sir. We're close to postulating a winning stratagem," the first man said.

"Well, if I were you, I'd start postulating myself a new job. You've had more than enough time to find a way to beat Yugi's Egyptian God Cards, but as usual, I'll have to do it myself. Now get out," Seto answered, turning to leave.

He sounded harsher than usual, which caused Mokuba and I to frown. We were both worried about him, though it was hard to bring up something like that around Seto.

"Aw, man," Mokuba mumbled.

I placed my hand on his shoulder and he looked up at me.

"It'll be okay," I whispered before turning to the men who were in charge of finding the strategy to beat Yugi. "I suggest you clear out before the end of the day."

Mokuba and I left the room, following after Seto. Mokuba ran off in a different direction while I continued to walk two steps behind Seto. The walk was silent for a while.

"Ebony, we're going on a little trip tomorrow," he finally said, breaking the silence.

"Where to," I asked with a slight smile, knowing he'd come up with an idea.

"We're going to pay Pegasus a visit."

"I'll tell Kido to have the jet ready for tomorrow."

I could see the smirk and couldn't help but smile. I was sure he'd be back to his old self in no time.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Seto and I walked up to the Duel Dome, where our jet was already prepared. It was designed to look just like a Blue Eyes White Dragon.

"This is flight command. Initiating Duel Dome launch conversion. Over," one of the workers, Kido, said over the speakers.

"Roger, dome command. Prepare all stations for immediate dragon flight. Over," Mokuba answered.

"That's affirmative. We show Mr. Kaiba and Miss Sharpe now approaching primary flight deck."

Seto and I were already in the jet, helmets on, and secured in. All that was left to do was make sure everything was ready for departure.

"Begin complete systems check at once," Seto ordered.

"Roger. Vector gauge," Kido answered.

"Check," someone else answered.

They went through the rest of the short list and my eyes darted around the screen in front of me.

"Ready the launch pad," Seto ordered.

"Yes, sir. Opening hangar doors."

The jet was put into position and I smiled.

"Here we go," I mumbled.

"Blue Eyes White Jet, you are cleared for takeoff!"

"Activating main thrusters," Seto said.

I could feel the engine rumbling as it roared, though it sounded like a purr from inside. Seto sat back in his seat.

"I hope you know what you're doing, big brother," Mokuba said.

"I was just hoping the same thing," Seto answered.

I leaned forward and patted his shoulder, silently telling him I believed in him.

'_You have such high faith in him,'_ Asenath noticed.

'_Of course I do,'_ I answered.

The jet took off and we were soon soaring high above the round. From behind, I could see Seto's stiff shoulders and knew he probably had that determined look on his face. To keep myself from worrying too much, I averted my gaze to the view below us.

'_It is beautiful,'_ Asenath mumbled.

'_Yeah. I love these rides, but we rarely take them,'_ I answered.

It wasn't long before we arrived on Pegasus' private island. It was the same place Duelist Kingdom was held on, when Mokuba was kidnapped by that freak. We walked straight to where Pegasus was and came up from behind him as he was drinking red wine. He saw us in the glass.

"Can it be? My dear friends Kaiba-boy and Miss Ebony Sharpe," Pegasus exclaimed while standing up.

"Spare me the pleasantries, Pegasus. You and I have never been friends. Let's not start pretending we are," Seto answered harshly.

"Anyone sick and twisted enough to hold Mokuba hostage is an enemy of mine," I added, my arms crossed in front of me.

"Oh, my. Sounds like someone needs a hug," Pegasus said.

"No, thanks. But since you mention it, there is something I need," Seto answered. "Listen, I've come to your little fantasy island in search of a card powerful enough to beat Yugi's three Egyptian God Cards," Seto answered.

"And you believe I might have this all-powerful, god-smiting card because…?"

"Because you created the game," I answered.

"Once upon a time, Miss Sharpe, but I'm retired now. There only things I create these days are places like this for the fishies to enjoy."

"I know you, Pegasus. You created the God Cards and would have never let them out of your sweaty little hands unless you'd also created a way to beat them, just in case," Seto explained.

"Oh, very well, I confess. I may have one card that would help, but you can't have it."

"What?"

"I'm sorry, Kaiba-boy, but I don't think you deserve it."

"He deserves it more than you do, you snake," I yelled.

Seto put his arm out to keep me from attacking Pegasus. However, judging from his stance, he probably wouldn't have liked anything better than to see that.

"As I was saying, I may not see as well as I once did," Pegasus continued, moving his long, silver hair to reveal his empty left eyes socket.

I cringed away and Seto made a sound of disgust.

"But to be honest, it doesn't take a magic eye to see just how thoroughly Yugi has trounced your sorry behind again and again. Quite frankly, it's embarrassing," Pegasus finished and I glared at him.

"Well, since I'm such a disappointment, you should have no trouble defeating me in a duel," Seto answered.

"And why would I duel you?"

"Because if you'll put up the card I need to beat Yugi, I'll wager these," Seto answered, pulling out his three Blue Eyes White Dragons.

My eyes widened and I gasped in shock.

"What," I whispered.

"Wow. You'd risk your precious Blue Eyes White Dragons just for a chance to trounce little Yugi? My, my, my, seems you're even more desperate than I thought. Well, I guess I could dust off my deck. Kaiba, my dear and devious friend, let the games begin," Pegasus answered and set down his wine glass.

He led us through his mansion, down to a dueling arena in the basement. On the way, he tried to make small talk.

"Miss Sharpe, may I ask what that device around your waist is," Pegasus asked.

He was talking about the thick, silver band that hung just above my hips. There was one part on the right side that was thicker than the rest and it was holding my deck inside.

"It's a duel disk designed by Kaiba Corp," I answered curtly.

I had left out all of the details, like how it was one-of-a-kind because it was still in testing and that Seto had designed it specifically for me because he knew I couldn't carry around a duel disk like his all the time. We finally got to the basement and multiple lights were turned on, as was the arena.

"So, what do you think, Kaiba-boy? Isn't this the latest in duel arena technology, or what," Pegasus asked.

"This place is an outdated joke, but then, so are you so I suppose it fits," Seto answered, causing me to chuckle.

"Now, now, Kaiba, let's not get nasty. Not just yet, anyhow."

"Look, enough small talk."

They both took their places on opposite sides of the arena, Pegasus on red and Seto on blue, while I stood on the sidelines to watch.

"Let's duel," they yelled.


	3. Chapter 3

"I'll start things off," Pegasus said and pulled the top card from his deck.

'_I believe Seto will win,' _Asenath commented.

'_Agreed. Unless Pegasus has some new tricks, which I doubt he does judging by the technology level here, then Seto has this in the bag,'_ I answered.

"Oh dear. I'm afraid you're about to enter a world of pain, Kaiba-boy. A world of chaos. A world of absolute mayhem. That's right! A world of Toons!"

Pegasus paid 1000 life points in order to bring Toon World to the field. A story book appeared and opened to reveal a pop-up village.

"Ha! Don't tell my you're actually still using that idiotic Toon World card," Seto called, causing Pegasus to growl at him. "Well, this is gonna be even easier than I thought."

"I summon Toon Gemini Elf, in attack mode," Pegasus yelled and the two monsters appeared on the field.

"And this for later," he finished, playing a facedown card. "It's your turn, Kaiba-boy."

I couldn't help but scowl at his pet-name for Seto. The nerve he had annoyed me. Seto drew a card, starting his turn.

"I summon X-Head Cannon! Also, I'll throw two cards facedown… for later," he said, finishing his turn quickly.

"I'm so scared, Kaiba. Two cards facedown? Oh, mercy me, what will I do? Oh, wait a minute, I know. Play this," Pegasus answered, playing the card he drew.

"Card of Sanctity! Isn't it pretty? And it allows us each to draw until we both have six cards in our hand."

They each drew and Pegasus' eyes narrowed. I wasn't sure if that was a good or bad sign.

"Just what I needed. And now I'll activate the magic card Cost Down which means that," Pegasus started.

"Do you ever shut up," Seto asked and I smirked. "I know what it means. Now you can summon your strongest monsters to the field more easily. Please, what do you take me for, some kind of rookie?"

"You're not quite that good, Kaiba-boy. I summon the Toon Dark Magician Girl! But I won't be using her just yet. First, I'll attack with the Gemini Elves and I think I'll have them target you!"

The two elves kicked Seto in the back, knocking him forward a step and he had to hold himself up on the table before him. His life points dropped to 2100.

"Cartoons are so violent these days. But we're not through yet. My elves have another ability. When they deal damage to a player, that player loses a card from his hand," Pegasus explained and the elves took Seto's Monster Reborn.

"Aren't my Toons simply magnificent, Kaiba-boy," the Duel Monsters creator asked.

I snorted in a very un-ladylike manner and he frowned at me. Seto growled at Pegasus.

"Oh, don't look so sour. Think of it this way: At least it will be them stopping your little quest to the top and not Yugi-boy for the umpteenth time. Now then, let's get on with it, shall we? Oh, Toon Dark Magician Girl, your turn!"

The toon girl flew forward, ready to attack.

"I guess it's true that when you get old the mind is the first thing to go because you forgot all about my facedown cards. And now it's gonna cost you."

Seto flipped one of his cards over, revealing Attack Guidance Armor.

"This trap's like a magnet that redirects your own attack right back at you," Seto explained.

"No, you wouldn't."

"Oh, yes, I would. And I will! Guidance Armor, attach to the Toon Gemini Elves!"

It did so and Pegasus' Toon Magician Girl destroyed them. Unfortunately, he brought them right back with Monster Reborn. The duel went on, with Pegasus summoning more Toons and Seto following whatever plan he had cooking in his head. It eventually got to the point where Seto had his XYZ-Dragon Cannon and Pegasus had the Blue Eyes Toon Dragon, Toon Summoned Skull, Toon Dark Magician Girl and Toon Gemini Elves.

"This is over," I said with a smirk when I saw Seto bring out the XYZ-Dragon Cannon.

"Go! Destroy Toon World," Seto ordered.

"No," Pegasus yelled.

"Use Cannon Firestorm!"

The child's story book was destroyed, ridding the field of the Toons, and the attack went straight on through to Pegasus, knocking him back.

"That's all folks," Seto said before walking off his platform, making me laugh silently.

As of late, Seto would rarely crack jokes, even when it was just him, Mokuba and me. That was a nice change and I felt like the old Seto was coming back.

"Now, let's see what you've got to beat the Egyptian Gods," he continued and my brief moment of relief was cut short.

He was back to focusing solely on beating Yugi.

"Looks like you had two cards up your sleeve," he said, pulling those two cards from the trunk.

"Why does that not surprise me," I muttered.

"What do you mean, two cards? Kaiba, there was only one," Pegasus insisted.

"Yeah, right. Nice try, you snake," Seto answered as we left.

"Well, I'd say that was a productive morning," I said with a smile as we climbed back into the Blue Eyes White Jet.

"I'll be dueling Yugi this evening and this time, I won't lose."

I frowned as I put my helmet on.

'_Is everything alright, Ebony,' _Asenath asked.

'_I'm worried about Seto. He's so obsessed with beating Yugi that he's putting everything else aside. I'm afraid Mokuba and I are going to lose him'_ I answered.

'_You don't have to worry about that. However, I believe there are forces at work here that are far beyond his comprehension.'_

'_Why does that sound like a bad thing?'_

"Ebony, I heard the museum has a new exhibit on Egypt. Why don't you see it," Seto suggested and I smiled, tears threatening to sting my eyes.

Seto knew I liked Egyptian history, even before Asenath came along. Actually, he was the reason I met the spirit within my Millennium Bracelet. He had bought it for me on my fifteenth birthday, not knowing what it was, and that's how it all started. By this point in time, Seto could tell the difference when Asenath took over my body.

"I think I will," I answered.


	4. Chapter 4

I had just returned from the museum, finding out a lot about the Pyramid of Light and the history of Anubis. Of course, it was nothing Asenath didn't already know.

'_This can't be good,'_ I said to Asenath as I walked into the duel dome, where Seto would be waiting for Yugi.

'_No. It isn't,'_ she answered.

Suddenly, my Millennium Bracelet glowed and I lost consciousness. In what I guess one would call my dream, I could see the Millennium Puzzle and the Pyramid of Light. Strangely, Asenath was right beside me and she looked as if she had her own body, though she still had my clothes and fair skin tone. Then I saw the image of Atem and Seto dueling, like they would be in a few short hours. Atem fell to the ground while Seto laughed triumphantly. This image scared me. Suddenly, a huge hand grabbed Seto by the head and I saw that it belonged to a muscular man with the head of a jackal.

"Seto," I screamed.

"Anubis," Asenath whispered venomously.

Anubis lifted Seto by the head and my friend looked to be in great pain.

"From the light comes the dark," Anubis yelled.

Then, everything was gone. I opened my eyes to see that Seto and Mokuba were both kneeling beside me. I started to sit up, but Seto held me down.

"Don't move. You fainted," he told me.

Finally, reality hit me and I completely ignored his order. I sat straight up and threw my arms around his neck, burying my face in his chest. Seto's arms rested on my lower back.

"Thank God," I whispered.

"Ebony, we should get you to the infirmary. You could have a concussion," Mokuba said in a worried tone.

I shook my head, pulling away from Seto, and wiped the tears from my eyes.

"No. I'm fine. I just… got scared, is all," I answered.

"Are you sure," Seto asked.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Besides, there's no way I'm missing this duel. Speaking of which, when's it going to start?"

"As soon as Yugi gets here. I was just about to leave and get him," Mokuba answered.

"Then go ahead. Everything's all set here."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"I promise. Now go."

I stood up and was able to keep my balance, proving to them that I was fine. Mokuba nodded and left to get Yugi while Seto and I went into the other room so he could prepare for the duel.

'_This is worse than I feared,'_ Asenath said.

She sounded scared, something I wasn't used to. I began to feel uneasy.

'_Don't tell me that,'_ I answered while trying not to let my fear show.


	5. Chapter 5

Not even an hour later, Yugi had arrived. No one but Asenath and I knew, but it was actually Atem in control. Seto and I walked into the room, though I moved more to the side and I stood right in between where they would be standing. I would have a front-row seat to all the action. Seto took his place, as did Atem.

"Welcome. Glad you came to duel, Yugi, because this time things are gonna be different," Seto greeted.

At that same moment, Joey and Tristan ran into the room as well, though they were on the upper level. Mokuba had gone up to the control center at the top of the duel dome.

"I hope you brought your Egyptian God Cards. Otherwise, this duel isn't gonna be any fun at all," Seto continued.

"Kaiba, I'm sensing the presence of something far more dangerous than anything you can possibly imagine," Atem answered.

'_My brother is right. This may become a shadow duel, though unintentionally. Ebony, please let me take over. I can better protect you that way,'_ Asenath asked of me.

'_What about Seto,'_ I asked.

'_He's strong. If anything goes wrong, you know I will protect him for you.'_

'…_Okay.'_

Asenath took over my body and stood completely still, her face devoid of all emotion other than concern that comes with a battle like this. I was still able to watch everything, though.

"Spare me the fairy tales," Seto answered.

"We could all be in great danger," Atem yelled.

"I've heard enough. If you think you sense something dangerous, you're absolutely right because it's me and my deck, and in this duel monsters match, you're about to lose big time. Mokuba, seal all of the exits!"

"If you say so," the boy answered.

In just seconds, every exit from the duel dome was sealed.

'_No! Seto, don't be stupid,'_ I screamed, though I knew he couldn't hear me.

He probably wouldn't have listened anyway. He had that determined look on his face again.

"What's the deal," Joey asked.

"We're trapped, man," Tristan yelled.

"Now, what do you say we get down to business already," Seto asked.

"Kaiba, why don't you stop thinking about yourself for once and listen to what I'm telling you," Atem yelled and I scowled.

He still didn't realize just how much Seto cared for Mokuba and me over himself.

"You're in no position to be making demands, so shut up and duel."

Their duel disks went into the ready position and lit up.

"And may the best duelist win," Seto finished.

They placed their decks in the disks and their life points were set at 4000.

"I guess Yugi's going through with this," Tristan commented.

"Kaiba ain't leaving him much choice," Joey answered.

"All duel dome exits are now secure. All dueling systems are online," Mokuba announced.

'_This is bad. This is really bad,'_ I mumbled.

'_We cannot interfere until we are sure of what will happen,'_ Asenath answered.

'_Isn't that freaky vision proof enough?!'_

'_It should be, but I just don't know anymore.'_

I frowned and looked ahead at the duel about to take place. I never liked being in an astral form, but I really didn't have more options in that situation.

"You've been taking the credit for being the best duelist for way too long and to tell you the truth, I'm sick of it. By the time this duel is over, you'll be exposed to the world as a total fraud," Seto yelled and started laughing.

It almost sounded maniacal to me and I didn't like it. That wasn't the Seto I had known for most of my life. He seemed so different.

"Let's duel," Atem and Seto both yelled and Seto drew the first card.

"I'll start. First I'll summon my Familiar Knight in defense mode. Try and get past him," he said, quickly finishing his first turn.

"Very well. I shall," Atem answered, drawing his first card. "I play Queen's Knight. And now say goodbye to your monster. Queen's Knight, attack!"

Seto's Knight was destroyed, but he seemed completely unphased by it. A new monster, Rare Metal Dragon, came onto the field.

"By destroying your knight, I've activated its special ability, which allows _you_ to play a new beast in its place," Atem said.

"What?! Yugi's lost it," Joey yelled. "Why would he let Kaiba play a monster with 2400 attack points?!"

"He did what," Tristan asked.

I briefly wondered why Atem would do something like that, but I figured he probably had something planned.

"And you're being so helpful because why," Seto asked.

"Because by doing so, I also get to summon a new monster, King's Knight," Atem answered, playing the monster.

"Now I see," Asenath mumbled and I looked over at her.

Seto was sure to know I wasn't in control now. Her voice was very different from mine. She sounded a lot like Ishizu Ishtar, whom I remembered from Seto's Battle City Tournament.

"When these two knights are in play, I can automatically summon my Jack's Knight," Atem continued.

I could see Seto glance over at Asenath and frown, probably directing it towards me. I promised I wouldn't miss this duel and, technically, I wasn't. However, as much as he understood about the odd relationship between Asenath and me, he still didn't quite understand that I could still be watching when she was in control. I groaned, knowing Seto thought I was missing his duel for no reason. I was in for hell when this was over.

"And next, I'll place one card face down. Make your move," Atem finished.

Seto drew his card, a frown still on his lips. However, I could tell he had gotten the card he wanted.

"Looks like your luck's finally run out. I'll keep this card facedown on the field until the time is right. Right for me, that is. And then nothing in your deck will make a difference. Your move, Yugi."

Right when Atem placed his hand on the top card, Asenath gasped. I knew he was about to draw one of his Egyptian God Cards.


	6. Chapter 6

"I sacrifice my three knights to bring forth my ultimate creature."

The three knights on the field became large, glowing orbs before lifting high into the air. Then, a bright light shone from above.

"Behold, the Egyptian God Card, Slifer the Sky Dragon," Atem yelled.

Seto smirked up at the monster as it was coming into play.

'_He has this all figured out. But I'm afraid if it's really him dueling,'_ I said.

'_What do you mean,'_ Asenath asked.

'_What if Anubis really is behind all of this… What will we do?'_

'_I don't know yet.'_

Slifer appeared on the field and roared loudly.

"Your monster is completely defenseless against the divine power of Slifer. Now, my Sky Dragon, attack," Atem yelled.

A light beam shot out of the Egyptian God's mouth and straight for Seto's monster, causing him to lose 600 life points.

"Had enough," Atem asked.

"Not only am I not afraid of your God Cards, but I'm gonna force you to summon all three of them at once," Seto answered, showing the card he drew, Obligatory Summon.

"Thanks to my Obligatory Summon magic card, you have to bring out every monster in your deck that falls into the same category as the one that's on the field already," he continued.

"Very well. Then I play two more Egyptian God Cards," Atem answered without missing a beat. "Obelisk the Tormentor and the Winged Dragon of Ra."

His duel disk glowed brightly; so much power was coming from it. My eyes widened as I watched the other two God Cards come to the field. I couldn't believe Seto was doing this. I didn't care how powerful the card he got from Pegasus was, there was no way he'd be able to take a direct hit from one of those monsters. Hell, the duel dome shook just when they were summoned.

"You've allowed me to assemble the three strongest and most feared creatures in Duel Monsters, Kaiba. A foolish mistake."

Seto began chuckling darkly again.

"It's no mistake. My entire strategy was to draw out your three Egyptian God Cards so I can be the first duelist to crush all of them at once," he answered.

"And just how do you intend to do that?"

"You're about to find out right now. Reveal trap card! Pyramid of Light!"

This time, Asenath and I both gasped. That was the name of the artifact at the museum. Atem's eyes widened in shock as well.

"Now, Pyramid, activate," Seto yelled.

A blue light hovered above the arena for a moment before cutting out a square outline. A literal Pyramid of Light was formed with only Seto, Atem and Asenath in it. I'm sure Yugi was watching this duel, just as I was, and we were perfectly safe so long as we were astral projections.

"This is very bad," Asenath mumbled and I looked over at her in shock.

I didn't like the sound of that at all. If _she_ was scared, then I knew this would be bad. The Egyptian Gods were left outside of the pyramid around us, obviously removed from play.

"Looks like your so-called unstoppable monsters have been stopped," Seto said smugly.

"Impossible," Atem yelled.

"See for yourself. Your monsters are useless!"

I could no longer see outside of the pyramid. It was as if we were in our own world. I began trembling in fear.

"But how," Atem asked.

Suddenly, I felt like something had stabbed my chest and I cried out.

"Ebony," Asenath yelled, looking at me.

Atem did the same thing for Yugi. Apparently, he had gotten the same shock.

"What's this," Atem asked as his Puzzle began giving off sparks.

I was then sucked into the Millennium Puzzle and I screamed out.

"Ebony," Asenath yelled, taking a step forward and reaching her hand out.

That was the last thing I saw before blacking out.


	7. Chapter 7

When I finally came to, someone was shaking my shoulder. I looked up and saw Yugi.

"Yugi?! Thank God it's you. What happened," I asked.

I looked around and saw so many mazes, stairs and doors that I thought I was going to be sick.

"I don't know, but it looks like we're inside the Millennium Puzzle," he answered.

"I figured that when I got sucked into it."

I could then hear Asenath's voice calling my name.

"Asenath! Where are you," I called.

"Ebony, are you okay," Yugi asked.

"Shut up for a minute so I can hear her."

'_Ebony, I'm glad we still have contact, though limited. Can you see what is happening,'_ Asenath asked.

I closed my eyes and could see Seto and Atem dueling, the Pyramid of Light still around them. Everything was silent.

"I can see in my mind's eye, but it comes in clearer when I have my own eyes closed. What's going on?"

'_It has become a shadow duel. I'm afraid you were correct about Anubis being behind this.'_

"Dammit."

"What's wrong," Yugi asked.

I gave him a confused look.

"You mean you can't see? Even when you close your eyes," I asked.

"See what?"

"The duel. You don't have any contact with At… er, Yami at all?"

"No. Why? Is something bad happening?"

"It's become a shadow game and Anubis is behind it. Do you know who Anubis was, besides the Egyptian God of the dead?"

"Yeah. I went to the museum today and found out. Then I had this weird vision."

"You too, huh? I guess we really _are_ linked because of Asenath and her brother."

"We've gotta find Yami so we can re-connect. I'm pretty sure that one of these rooms belongs to him. The question is: which one? There must be a million doorways in this place," Yugi said.

"Well, we're not going to find out by just standing here. Let's start looking," I answered.

"Right."

Yugi and I began searching through the corridors, opening every door we came to. There was nothing to be found. All the while, I was keeping my eyes on the duel taking place outside of the Puzzle.

"Pharaoh," Yugi yelled out in frustration after searching at least fifty rooms.

Outside, in the duel, Seto was taunting Atem.

"It hurts, doesn't it, when you put your faith in the Gods and they let you down. If I were you, now would be a good time to start praying for mercy because from here on out, I plan to take you apart piece by painful piece," he said.

I cringed and Yugi gave me a curious look.

"What's wrong," he asked.

"It's Seto… Something's not right here. He's not acting like his normal self," I answered.

"What do you mean?"

"You don't know what he's really like. Just forget about it and let's keep looking for the pharaoh."

As we searched, however, I kept and eye on how the duel was going. It was very blurry and hard to focus on, but I somehow managed it.

Seto rid the field of Atem's facedown card and summoned Peten the Dark Clown. The clown attacked Atem directly, stabbing him in the back. I could hear the pharaoh groan in pain and I could feel it as well. I suddenly felt a little weaker than before.

"Wh-What's going on," I mumbled.

'_My brother and I are connected, as you know. As he loses his life energy, so do I,' _Asenath answered and my eyes widened in shock.

"Damn."

"What's wrong, Ebony," Yugi asked.

"N-Nothing. Come on. One of these doors has to lead to the pharaoh," I answered.


	8. Chapter 8

Back in the duel, Seto had placed another card facedown while Atem stood.

"That attack… It drained some, but I'm far from finished. Magician Valkyria, attack! Mystic Scepter Blast," the pharaoh yelled.

The attack destroyed Peten, bringing Seto's life points down to 2300. He groaned in pain and he appeared to be weakened slightly. Something very wrong was happening and I was beginning to fear for their lives. Seto regained his composure quickly, but he still trembled slightly.

"Nice try, Yugi, but I knew you'd make that move, which is why my facedown card is… Deck Destruction Virus," he yelled.

Atem scowled, knowing what would happen.

"You set off this crippling trap when you destroyed my Dark Clown and now its viral tentacles will infect ten cards from your deck and then send them straight to the graveyard," Seto explained.

"Oh, no."

"Oh, yes, Yugi. Now say goodbye to twenty-five percent of your duel deck."

The plasma-like tentacles came from out of the card and straight to Atem's deck, sending ten cards to the graveyard. They wrapped around his arms and sent electrical shock waves to him.

"No," Atem yelled.

"I hate to be the bearer of even more bad news, but when you destroyed my Peten the Dark Clown, you activated his special ability, allowing me to summon another Dark Clown to take his place."

Another Peten appeared on the field, in defense mode. He took off his hat and gave a bow, chuckling all the time. He then stuck out his tongue at Atem. I had to resist the urge to giggle.

'_Ebony, this is no laughing matter,'_ Asenath warned.

'_I'm sorry, but that's cute,'_ I answered.

Seto drew another card and his eyes narrowed slightly. I was sure he'd drawn a card that would help him.

"I summon Des Feral Imp. And next, I'll activate the magic of Card of Demise. It lets me draw five new cards from my deck, but if I don't use 'em in five turns, I lose 'em in five turns," Seto explained.

He drew five cards and took a quick look at them. I could tell he had a good hand.

"Now, I'll sacrifice my Feral Imp and activate White Dragon Ritual to summon Paladin of White Dragon. Paladin, attack with Ionic Spear Burst," he yelled.

The attack went straight for the Magician Valkyria, destroying her and causing Atem's life points to drop to 3200. He was weakened once again, as was I.

"This is really bad," I mumbled.

'_Yes, but there is no way to stop it from where I stand. You and Yugi may be able to, though,'_ Asenath answered.

"And now, I summon Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

Seto's Blue Eyes appeared on the field and a small smile graced my features. There was something about the Dragon that I found familiar, though I couldn't explain it.

"Do you have good news," Yugi asked.

"Probably not good for you, but Seto just summoned the Blue Eyes," I answered.

"That's awful! He's going to take out the pharaoh with that! Why are you smiling?"

"Because I love the Blue Eyes White Dragon. It's strange, but whenever Seto and I are working with the virtual reality game, Blue Eyes and Wingweaver always protect me, without hesitation. That's beside the point, though. Right now, we need to worry about the fact that this is a shadow game."

I turned my attention back towards the duel as Yugi and I continued walking the corridors of the Millennium Puzzle.

"Take a good look. It's the monster that's been the bane of your dueling existence ever since our first match, and now he's back, but he's not alone. Any last requests," Seto asked, placing a facedown card.

"This is really bad… really, really bad," I murmured.

"What," Yugi asked.

"Like I said, Seto's not acting like himself, even with Blue Eyes there. I'm worried."

Yugi nodded, understanding the concern I had for my dearest friend. We continued walking the corridors in silence. Suddenly, he saw something.

"There he is. Hey, pharaoh," he yelled and ran after the spirit.

I followed after him, seeing the pharaoh's form as well. We turned the corner and he disappeared.

"Where did he go," Yugi mumbled.

"Over there," I answered, and pointed straight ahead.

It was strange that Atem was appearing and disappearing like that, but I decided not to question it. After all, we _were_ in the Millennium Puzzle. We followed Atem down the corridor until he walked through a metal door.

"This isn't his room," Yugi mumbled and I got a really bad feeling from that.

Yugi opened the door and we could see what looked like and Egyptian tomb. Atem was standing in front of a sarcophagus with the head of a jackal. I knew it had to be Anubis. Atem became a pale blue aura and was absorbed into the casing.

"Pharaoh! Oh, no," Yugi exclaimed.


	9. Chapter 9

We could hear a sinister chuckle and I took a step back. It sounded just like the voice of Anubis from my vision.

"Who's there," Yugi asked.

"I'd rather not know," I told him.

The voice started chanting in a language foreign to me and the caskets on the floor began opening. Mummified zombies arose from the caskets and Yugi and I both started trembling. The mummies started coming at us. We ran out of the room as fast as our legs could carry us.

"Yugi, you in here," a voice called.

It sounded like Joey.

"Yugi," another boy called.

Yugi and I continued running down the hall. We saw Joey and Tristan, but ran right past them.

"Talk later! Run now," Yugi screamed.

"What's with him," Joey asked.

In the next second, I could tell they had found their answer. They both screamed and ran with Yugi and me. I closed my eyes as I sprinted and the duel became clearer to me.

"I don't know what dark powers are at work here, but I can't let them go unchecked. I play Premature Burial to raise Valkyria from the graveyard and I'll boost her strength with Mage Power," Atem yelled.

His life points dropped to 2400 from using the first card. Seto's eyes narrowed.

"It may cost me 800 life points, but my Valkyria now gains 500 attack and defense points every time I play a magic or trap card, like these two," Atem continued and set two cards facedown.

"A thousand additional attack points make my Valkyria more than a match for you Blue Eyes. Attack, Valkyria, with Mystic Scepter Blast!"

The green orb went straight for Blue Eyes and I was sure she'd be destroyed.

"Not so fast, Yugi. Attack Guidance Armor will save my Blue Eyes," Seto yelled and the armor attached to Peten.

The attack destroyed the Dark Clown.

"And since my Deck Destruction Virus is still in play, it infects ten more cards in your deck," Seto continued.

The tentacles wrapped around Atem's arm again, sending ten more cards to his graveyard.

"I've lost half the cards in my deck already," he said.

"Soon you'll lose them all. But first, I'll bring back an old friend who just hates to say goodbye."

Yes another Peten the Dark Clown appeared on the field in defense mode.

'_Have you had any luck,'_ Asenath asked me.

"I'm being chased by zombies right now," I yelled, still racing down the labyrinth corridors.

I focused my mind's eye on the duel once more as I ran.

"And next, I'm gonna summon up your worst nightmare! Because if you couldn't defeat one Blue Eyes, there's no way you'll defeat three, especially when combined as the Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon," Seto yelled, calling the dragon to the field.

"If you think he's scary now, wait 'til he attacks. In fact, don't wait. Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon, Neutron Blast!"

The three heads of the dragon unleashed a beam directed at Atem's monster. She was destroyed, causing the pharaoh's life points to drop to 1500. I stumbled as more energy was drained from me.

"Look at the world's best duelist now," Seto said.

"Ebony, are you okay," Yugi asked as we slowed to a stop, right at a drop-off in the Puzzle.

It looked like a cliff.

"I'm fine," I answered.

"I think we lost them," Tristan said as he sat down.

Joey and Yugi both had their hands on their knees as I dropped down onto mine.

"So, what were those freaks," Joey asked between gasping breaths.

"They were Santa's freaking elves. What the hell do you _think_ they were," I yelled.

We could then hear chuckling behind us and turned around to see a huge red eye floating in the air. It showed the duel taking place.

"Yugi, what the heck is going on," Joey asked.

"We've been drawn into the Millennium Puzzle and that thing up there is somehow responsible," Yugi answered.

"Then what's that down there," Tristan asked.

We looked down to see the Pyramid of Light breaking the Millennium Puzzle, piece by little piece.

"That blue one looks like the Pyramid of Light I saw in at the museum," Yugi exclaimed.

"Yeah, well it looks like it's beating the crud outta your Millennium Puzzle," Joey answered.

"I'll say," I whispered.

"Fighting pyramids and creepy, floating eyes… wonderful," Tristan muttered.

"It's crazy," Yugi said.

"Hey, when you hang around with Yugi, this is par for the course," Joey answered.

"So, any ideas what we're up against," Tristan asked.

"Maybe," I answered. "I think it this all has to do with an ancient Egyptian sorcerer."

"I knew it was gonna be something insane," Joey said.

"She's right. He's called Anubis, the Egyptian lord of the dead," Yugi added, backing me up.

"Lord of the dead?!"

"Yeah. Centuries ago, he tried to destroy the world. And I'm starting to believe he's trying to make a comeback."

"What," the other two boys yelled.

We all looked up and could see Seto attack Atem once again, destroying his Valkyria.

"Doesn't look like the duel is going to well for your friend, the pharaoh," Tristan commented.

"We've got to do something to help him. And all I can think of right now is to head back to Anubis' tomb," Yugi answered.

"He's right. It's the only way," I agreed.

"You mean back towards the mummies," Joey asked nervously.

"Hey, come on, we already know we can outrun 'em," Tristan answered.

"That's the spirit. Now let's kick some zombie ass," I yelled.

I then began watching the duel through Asenath again as we ran back down the halls.


	10. Chapter 10

"Does it hurt, Yugi? Because it only gets worse from here," Seto taunted.

"Kaiba, we can't continue this duel. There's another power at work here and it's destroying us both," Atem yelled.

"That's getting a bit old."

"No, that Pyramid of Light has created a deadly shadow game. I know you sense it. We must stop now!"

"He's right! I sense it too and right now, Ebony is locked within the Millennium Puzzle, trying to fight off this other force. Kaiba, you must stop this before it's too late. WE both know you can sense this darkness," Asenath yelled.

"I've heard enough. The only thing I sense is your fear, Yugi, not that I blame you. But I came here to win and stopping is not an option! For all the times you humiliated me in a duel when, clearly, I should've been champion. For all the times I had too listen to you preach about the Heart of the Cards! You're going down, Yugi, and my Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon is gonna put you there," Seto yelled.

"Kaiba, once again, your ridiculously over-inflated ego blinds you to the truth. I am far from beaten! I play Monster Reborn to bring back Dark Magician Girl," Atem yelled and the girl appeared on the field.

"Next, I reveal my facedown card, Sage's Stone! When the Dark Magician Girl is on the field and Sage's Stone is played, it allows me to automatically summon Dark Magician!"

"Big deal," Seto said.

"Oh, it's a very big deal. For now I sacrifice both magicians to summon the Sorcerer of Dark Magic. And with his rise to power comes your Blue Eyes' fall from grace. Because for every one of my Sorcerer's fallen comrades in the graveyard, your dragon loses 500 points! And right now, there have been three magicians laid down to rest so your precious Ultimate Dragon's power decreases by 1500 points," Atem explained.

"But that means my Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon is vulnerable to attack!"

"That's exactly what it means! Attack with Celestial Blast!"

The Blue Eyes was destroyed, causing Seto's life points to drop to 2100. I could see his life energy leave his body.

"Now, will you stop this madness," Atem asked.

"After one lucky move? I don't think so," Seto answered and drew his next card.

Yugi drew a card as well.

"Very well, Kaiba, you leave me no choice. I move to attack Peten the Dark Clown!"

"No. I'll have no monsters on the field to defend my life points," Seto said through clenched teeth.

"Sorcerer, Celestial Blast attack!"

Peten was destroyed in seconds.

"You may have destroyed my clown, but you forge about my Deck Virus trap card! And at a time you couldn't afford to! Your deck's about to be wiped out!"

The Sorcerer stood in the way and destroyed the plasma-like tentacles.

"What," Seto exclaimed.

"Sorry, Kaiba, but my Sorcerer of Dark Magic's mystic powers are so mighty; he can stop the activation of trap cards, like your Deck Virus, and destroy them. My deck is safe," Atem answered.

"But your life points aren't."

Seto drew a card and smirked. He then began chuckling darkly and I frowned.

"I activate the magic of Monster Reborn."

The Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon appeared behind Seto.

"Then, I'll sacrifice my reborn Ultimate Dragon to summon a new monster" he continued.

"What?!"

"That's right. You see, I have an even more powerful monster, compliments of Pegasus. A shiny new dragon, the Blue Eyes Shining Dragon!"

The Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon crumbled, giving way to Seto's new dragon. It flew in and lit up brightly. It was beautiful.

"And for every dragon in my graveyard, the Blue Eyes Shining Dragon gains and additional 300 attack points. That's an extra 1500 attack points right off the bat, for a punishing grand total of 4500 points."

"Whoa," I whispered.

"But don't forget, due to my Sorcerer's power, your new dragon's attack points decrease by 1500," Atem yelled.

"I don't think so, thanks to my dragon's Shining Diffusion," Seto answered.

"What?! You're points didn't decrease?!"

"Exactly. That's because my Blue Eyes Shining Dragon allows me to choose which magic, trap or monster effect cards can be used against him. Just face it, Yugi. Your days as a champion duelist are over. My Shining Dragon is gonna blast you back to the minor leagues where you belong! Now, hit him again, Blue Eyes. Shining Neutron Blast," Seto yelled.

The attack completely destroyed Atem's Sorcerer, causing his life points to drop to a mere 200.

"How do you like it? The pain, the sting of defeat? I felt it for too long," Seto said.

Atem fell to the ground as more of his life energy was drained.

"Now it's your turn," Seto finished.


	11. Chapter 11

"You sure this is the way to that mummy guy," Joey asked.

"Yeah, every hallway looks the same," Tristan yelled.

Suddenly, Yugi and I both collapsed to the ground. I could tell that Asenath had fallen as well. Yugi wrapped his arms around himself, as if in pain, and I clutched at my heart as I tried to sit up straight.

"Hey, what's wrong, Yuge," Joey asked.

"Ebony, are you okay," Tristan asked at the same time.

"It's weird. Suddenly I feel really weak, guys," Yugi answered.

"It's because as the pharaoh's life is drained, so is yours. And because Asenath is his sister, she and I are weakened as well," I explained.

"Check it out. It's some kind of energy stream," Tristan said, pointing out the stream passing by, just under the floor level.

"Maybe if we follow this thing, it'll lead us to Anubis," Yugi suggested.

"That's exactly what it'll do," I answered, using the wall to help me stand up.

"Sounds like a plan. Come on, pal," Joey answered and helped Yugi up.

Tristan came to my side and put me on his back before running after Joey. We finally got to the door and Tristan let me off his back.

"Looks like this is it," Joey said.

"Yeah," Yugi answered.

We walked into the room and could see all of the energy going into the sarcophagus.

"Foolish mortals. There is nothing you can do to stop my rebirth. I have infiltrated the realm of the pharaoh and his life force now feeds mine," Anubis said darkly.

"We won't stand here while you suck the life from others to save yourself," Yugi answered.

"We're gonna take you down, Anubis," I yelled.

"I'd stay in that casket if I were you," Joey added.

"Yeah, because in case you haven't noticed, we've got you outnumbered," Tristan said, taking a step forward.

The mummies from before came out again.

"This place is crawling with stiffs," Tristan said.

I glared that Anubis' sarcophagus.

"You don't scare me! In my life, I've learned to not only stare death in the eye, but to flip him the bird," I yelled and did just that.

"Ebony, what are you doing?!"

Anubis just chuckled evilly.

"What do you want anyway," Yugi asked.

"Behold the future, since you won't live to see it for yourself," Anubis answered.

We could see the image of monsters destroying cities.

"Soon, my bests of destruction shall annihilate all traces of life on earth and I will finally completely that which I started millennia ago. It is by your hand that this devastation will occur, mortal. For when you released the pharaoh, you released me as well," the god of death explained.

"What," Joey asked.

"What's he mean," Tristan demanded.

"This is between me and him. Listen, you guys need to find a way out of this place and save yourselves. I'm gonna stay and figure this out," Yugi answered.

I shook my head. I was already determined to say; this was personal. Not only had he messed with Asenath's brother, but he was slowly destroying Seto as well.

"Figure what out," Joey asked.

"There was a prophecy my grandpa to me in the museum. I think it may have something to do with this, I just don't know what."

"Yuge, that's crazy talk!"

"Just go, guys."

"I'm not leaving. This involves me, as the keeper of the Millennium Bracelet, as much as it does you," I answered.

"And there's no way _we're_ leaving you. We're a team," Joey added. "We've been through everything together and there's no chance we're turning our backs now, pal."

"That's right," Tristan yelled.

"But… the last thing I wanna do is put my best friends in danger," Yugi answered.

"And there's no way in hell I'm letting this guy get away with what he's done. He's killing the pharaoh and he's the one who's been destroying Seto from the inside out. Messing with my friends doesn't go unpunished. You're not getting rid of me, Yugi," I answered.

Just then, we could see Téa come from out of nowhere. She was shining, like she was in astral form and not bound to the plane the rest of us were on.

"Téa," Yugi exclaimed.

"How'd you find us," Joey asked.

"Are you kidding me? Remember the friendship symbol we drew," she asked, holding up her hand.

Gold markings appeared on it.

"Of course we do," Tristan answered, holding his hand up as well. Similar markings adorned it.

The same went for Yugi and Joey.

"The ink may have faded, but our bond never will," Joey said.

"Right," They both said.

"We're all with you and we'll always be with you," Téa said.

"I don't have your little friendship smiley-face, but know I've got your back here," I finished.

"Thanks, guys," Yugi said. "Friends to the end!"

"Yeah," they all answered and put their hands together in the center of them.

The smiley-face on their hands began to glow brighter. I had to admit, it was the stupidest thing I'd ever seen.

"You see? There's nothing out there that's more powerful than our friendship," Téa said.

"Téa's right. I can feel it. All we have to do is stick together," Yugi added.

"Hey, sticking together is what we do best," Joey answered.

"We'll never leave your side," Téa finished.

She was then jerked away, into mid-air.

"Téa," the boys yelled.

"Your pathetic little bond is nothing against my power. Soon my soul will be fully restored, and your world shrouded in darkness! Yet you fools prattle on about togetherness? Then so be it," Anubis yelled.

A beam shot Téa and she stopped moving, her eyes wide.

"Téa," the boys yelled again.

The girl began falling, now bound to this plane, and the mummies poised to attack her.


	12. Chapter 12

"Téa, watch out," Yugi yelled.

Téa kicked the mummies, knocking their heads off of their shoulders, and landed on the ground. A head landed beside her and a hand on her shoulder. She screamed and threw it off of her.

"Let's take 'em apart," Joey yelled, running forward.

"Literally," Tristan added.

"This is my kind of fight," I crowed.

We all ran forward and began attacking. Joey knocked the head off one and Tristan kicked another in the stomach. His foot got stuck.

"That wasn't supposed to happen. Kicks to the stomach don't work," he yelled, pushing the mummy away.

"Neither do kicks to the head," Joey answered.

I tried to use on of the charms on my Millennium Bracelet, but nothing worked.

"My Bracelet doesn't work here," I screamed and ducked as a mummy came after me.

I swung my leg under his foot, causing him to fall backwards, and ran to join the others.

"These carcasses won't quit," Tristan yelled, ripping apart the mummy. "How do you destroy what's already dead?"

"I _would_ seal them away, but we've already established that my Bracelet won't work here," I answered.

The mummies started moving again. Téa screamed while Joey kept kicking them away from him. As they advanced, Asenath kept sending me images from the duel. Atem had finally woken up.

"How the mighty have fallen. Lying there on the ground like a dog waiting to be put out of its misery. Get up! Get up so I can knock you back down," Seto yelled, his voice sounded exactly like Anubis' at the end.

I clutched my head and dropped to my knees.

"Ebony," Joey called.

"Make it stop! Leave Seto alone," I screamed and was suddenly engulfed in light.

"What's going on," Tristan yelled.

The next thing I knew, I was back in my body, on the floor, watching the duel. Somehow, Asenath and I had switched places. I watched as Atem stood back up.

"Something's not right, Kaiba, and you know it," he said.

"Spare me the mystic mumbo jumbo. You just can't stand that your reputation's at stake," Seto answered.

"You have no ideas what's at stake here."

"Seto, you have to stop this, please," I cried.

My body was shaking and my eyes were wide with panic. I must have looked similar to the way I did when I first met Seto, when he saved me from drowning in that river.

"I'm not giving up now that I'm so close to winning," he answered harshly.

That was when I knew it wasn't him at all anymore. He would never have used that tone with me.

"Believe me; I cannot let you win this duel. Big Shield Gardna! Defense mode," Atem yelled.

"You know, I think you're the one who doesn't have a clue what this match is really about. It's about payback."

Seto drew his card with an evil grin on his face.

"And this card will see to that. But first, let's deal with your so-called Big Shield Gardna. Do you think it's big enough to block the power of my Blue Eyes Shining Dragon? Shining Dragon, attack with Shining Neutron Blast!"

The attack completely shattered Atem's monster, leaving him defenseless. I was terrified. This person looked, talked and acted like Seto, but I knew it couldn't be him. He had have been controlled by Anubis, but how could I save Seto?

"I told you when we started this duel that this time was gonna be different, Yugi. You have beaten me in the past, but now there's nothing you can do to stop me from having my revenge! You're finished," Seto yelled.

His voice sounded more and more like Anubis'.

"Not yet, I'm not," Atem answered and drew another card.

"I activate Pot of Greed, which lets me draw two cards. Now I summon Watapon in defense mode. And since I used Pot of Greed to play Watapon, I can summon another monster to the field. And I choose Obnoxious Celtic Guardian! It's your move."

"So let me see if I've got this right, now. You're playing a cream puff and an elf," Seto said.

Had I not been so terrified, I probably would have laughed.

"Well, then it's your funeral. First, the Card of Demise I played before sends this dragon to the graveyard. And I know you know what that means, don't you? Now my Blue Eyes Shining Dragon has more destructive power than ever before."

"Kaiba, please listen to me," Atem yelled.

"All I wanna hear from you is your anguished cry of defeat."

Once again, Seto's voice started sounding like Anubis' towards the end of his sentence.

"Seto, stop," I screamed, rising to my feet.

I could feel the tears forming in my eyes. Seto didn't even glance at me.

"Kaiba, for the last time, I'm begging you to stop this. People are getting hurt, lives are in danger, Ebony can't even recognize you anymore and this Pyramid of Light you've created is the source of it all! There's a dark power in our midst and you can't deny it. With every life point lost, we both become weaker. I know you can feel it. We must stop before it's too late," Atem yelled.

Seto closed his eyes, as if in thought. I hoped he would finally listen to reason.

"I'm afraid that for you, it's already too late, Yugi," he answered, crushing what little hope I had.

"No, Kaiba, please. You mustn't do this. We still have time to stop this madness. All we have to do is end this duel."

"You know, Yugi, you're absolutely right. Stopping the duel is exactly what I'm gonna do. Now, Shining Blue Eyes, activate your final special ability!"

"No, you're playing with forces you can't possibly understand!"

"I use Shining Nova! It puts the rage of a thousand Blue Eyes into a blast so strong it destroys itself plus anything I choose. And the card that will feel the wrath of my Blue Eyes Shining Dragon is the Pyramid of Light! Your reign as the king of games is over. That title will be mine, as will all three of your Egyptian God Cards. Blue Eyes Shining Dragon, sacrifice yourself and destroy the Pyramid of Light," Seto commanded.

The attack hit the card, but nothing happened. A sinister laugh could be heard throughout the dome.

"This, I cannot allow," Anubis' voice called.

"No," I screamed, my tears finally spilling over my eyes.

"What?! The Pyramid of Light wasn't destroyed," Atem yelled in shock.

"The Pyramid of Light endures because I will it, so great is my power," Anubis answered.

Seto took a step back and glanced over at me. His eyes widened upon seeing my tears and the fear in my eyes. I knew that Seto had finally realized what Anubis had blinded him from before.

"Hey, what is this? Show yourself, whoever you are," he ordered.

"I have been here the whole time, mortal, whispering in your ear."

"The whole time?! No. This is some sort of trick."

"Kaiba," Atem yelled.

"Look out," I finished, running forward.

A huge, muscular man appeared behind Seto. He grabbed Seto by the head, just like in my vision. The only difference was that the man no longer had the head of a jackal. It was human, and completely bald. He lifted Seto just as I arrived.

"Put him down," I screamed and raised my fist to attack the man.

"You have served me well, little worm, but you have outlived your usefulness," Anubis said and flung Seto to the side, knocking him unconscious.

He threw his arm at me, sending me in the same direction. I landed on Seto, but sharply hit my head on the metal floor, knocking me out as well.


	13. Chapter 13

When I finally awoke, I was in a bit of a daze moment. My vision soon cleared and I pushed myself.

"Seto, wake up," I pleaded, shaking his shoulder.

I saw that the Pyramid of Light was gone, as was Anubis.

'_My brother won,'_ Asenath informed me.

'_Asenath! You're back,'_ I exclaimed.

Seto groaned and opened his eyes.

"Kaiba! Are you all right," Yugi asked, running up to us.

I gave Seto a look that asked the same question. He sat up, and nodded slightly.

"Let me help you," Yugi offered, extending a hand.

"I can take care of myself," Seto answered harshly, slapping Yugi's hand away.

He cringed in pain, but stood on his. I stood as well and made sure I was close enough to Seto to help if he needed it.

'_This isn't over,'_ Asenath realized, staring at a small red orb in the ground.

'_Are you freaking kidding me,'_ I yelled.

The orb glowed brighter.

"What the," Seto started to ask.

A black flame erupted from the orb, causing me to take a step back.

"Shadows take life. Creatures be born. Now, let's see how well you play this game when the monsters are real," Anubis yelled.

He slowly became his own monster, starting as what looked like black slime.

"Dammit," I muttered.

"It is no longer time to duel. Now it is time to die!"

Anubis became some kind of giant, armored jackal. He shot a stream of black fire, or shadows; I couldn't tell which. The blast came from his mouth and Yugi, Seto and I had to jump out of the way. It blew a hole in the side of the duel dome.

"Nothing in your decks of cards can save you now," Anubis yelled and two magic formed in the air. They blew Yugi's deck out of his duel disk and caused mine and Seto's disks to malfunction, bursting into sparks around us. We both cried in pain. Seto grabbed his left arm while I wrapped on arm around my waist. All of our cards were scattered across the floor around us.

"It appears you are one card short, Pharaoh," Anubis said.

"Yeah, but I'm not! Attack! Gilford the Lightning and Gearfried the Iron Knight," Joey yelled, setting the cards on his duel disk.

The monsters had no effect, however.

"Be gone," the giant jackal yelled and destroyed Joey's monsters.

The blast blew another hole in the ceiling.

"You have no concept of my powers, and now the end begins," Anubis yelled, the shadows erupting from his body, destroying everything around us.

"We're pancakes," Joey yelled as we watched the ceiling fall apart.

Just as Joey, Téa, Tristan, Mokuba, Pegasus and Solomon were about to be flattened, Toon Dark Magician Girl and Blue Eyes Toon Dragon stopped the rubble from hitting them. I'd never been so happy to see those Toons in my life.

"Not yet! These Toon monsters won't last long. We have to get out of here while we still have the chance," Pegasus yelled.

I briefly wondered when he arrived, but more pressing matters pushed that thought aside.

"Yugi, I know you'll take this creep down," Joey yelled.

"That's right! Because we'll be with you all the way," Téa added.

She, Joey and Tristan all held up their hands, like before, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Now was _not_ the time for their little friendship speech. Of course, Yugi held up his hand as well. A piece of the ceiling nearly hit me and I had to jump out of the way. The quick movement sent a wave of pain to my side and I clutched it, trying not to cry out.

"Ebony," Seto called.

"I'm fine," I answered through clenched teeth.

"Fine, fine. Let's go already," Pegasus yelled, rushing them out of the duel dome.

For once, I actually agreed with that raving lunatic. Anubis roared loudly, causing the building to shake even more.

"What are we going to do," I asked.

A huge ax then grew on the jackal's head. The red orb started to glow again.

'_Does he ever stop growing,'_ I mentally asked.

'_I do not know,' _Asenath answered.

"How can we beat a real monster," Yugi asked.

Seto looked behind him and started walking towards a facedown card. Something caught my eyes and I picked up a card as well. It was my most treasured monster, Wingweaver.

"How? With a real monster. Yugi," Seto called and threw the card he'd picked up.

He was on his knees again, clutching his left arm in pain.

"What's this," Yugi asked.

"The one card that can beat him."

I put my Wingweaver in my deck holder before kneeling down to help Seto. I figured there had to be some reason I had found her so easily.

"It's time to get real with the Blue Eyes Shining Dragon! Shining Nova Attack," Yugi yelled as Anubis formed a shadow beam in his mouth again.

"If the monsters are real, so are their powers, including this dragon's ability to destroy any monster!"

The Shining Dragon appeared in the sky, flying overhead. Anubis fired his shadow beam.

"Destroy Anubis," Yugi yelled.

The Shining Dragon began to glow brightly and I put my arm up to shield my eyes from the light.

"No," Anubis yelled as the attack came down on him.

There was so much energy that I was afraid Yugi, Seto and I would be hurt from it. Suddenly, Wingweaver appeared before us, protecting us from any affects the attack may have. Anubis slowly melted, screaming in agony. The tiny red orb shattered and the Blue Eyes Shining Dragon exploded from its own attack. My Wingweaver turned and gave Yugi, Seto and me a small smile.

"You are safe now, little ones," she said in a caring tone before fading away.

'_Farewell, mother,'_ Asenath answered.

I was no longer surprised by that. I had long since known that in ancient times, Asenath and Atem's mother had fused her soul with her favorite monster, becoming the Wingweaver. The only reason she protected me more often than Yugi was because he had the Dark Magician.

The shadows faded, revealing a beautiful, starlit sky.

"Now, it's over," I whispered, a small smile adorning my face.

A few minutes later, the others came back inside and Mokuba started wrapping Seto's wound on his arm.

"Ebony, do you need anything," Mokuba asked.

"I'll be alright," I answered, looking up at the night sky.

Never before had I been so thankful to see the stars.

'_I guess nearly dying really makes you appreciate life,'_ I mumbled.

'_Yes, it truly does,'_ Asenath answered.

"He's not coming back again, right," Téa asked.

"We should take a closer look at that prophecy to see what it foretells for the future," Yugi's grandfather said.

"Oh, please, old man. Anubis is gone. No one could return after suffering a defeat so thoroughly devastating as that. Well, no one but Kaiba, that is. I'm sorry, did I say that out loud," Pegasus answered.

"Shut up, Pegasus. I'd hit you if I had the energy to," I yelled.

Seto and I stood up and began walking with Mokuba towards the doors. But first, Seto stopped to say something to Yugi.

"Kaiba," Yugi said in a worried tone.

"Oh, please. Spare me all your bull about friendship, will you? If it wasn't for that freak crashing the party, we both know the winner of today's duel would've been me. So enjoy your last days of being champion while you still can," Seto answered and I gave a small smile.

Seto was finally back to normal.

"I gotta say, it's nice to have the old Kaiba back."

"Yeah? Well, this conversation's over. We'll duel again."

Seto started walking off.

"Wait up," Mokuba called and ran after his older brother.

I stayed behind for a moment longer.

"I'm sure glad he didn't bring up all the damage you did to the duel dome 'cause I don't think his insurance is gonna cover this," Solomon said in a slight joking manner.

"He's got plenty of money, Grandpa, but what he doesn't have is a Millennium Puzzle. And unless he changes, he won't have best friends like this. What Kaiba doesn't get is that victory means nothing unless you can share it with the people you love because then, you're really a winner," Yugi answered.

"Yugi," I said, "I understand where you're coming from with this whole friendship thing and I know you think that he's just a cold-hearted jerk. You think Seto could never have someone to love him but… You're wrong."

Yugi and his friends all gave me a slightly surprised look as I walked away from them. I quickly caught up with Seto and Mokuba as we walked through one of the exits. The doors shut behind us and I walked with my gaze averted to the ground. If Seto turned to see me staring at him, he'd think I was mad, disappointed or, even worse, afraid of him. Mokuba looked up at Seto and then ran ahead, disappearing down the hall. I continued following right behind Seto, my eyes downcast and my arm wrapped around my side. Seto stopped abruptly, causing me to run into him. I took a half-step back to give him some room and looked up at him.

"Seto? Is something wrong," I asked.

He turned around and pulled me close, wrapping his arms firmly but gently around me. I gasped quietly and my body was slightly stiff from surprise.

"I'm sorry," Seto murmured.

I immediately relaxed and rested my head on his chest. I brought my left hand up and placed it next to my head before closing my eyes.

"What's there to forgive," I whispered.

Following Yugi's logic, Seto had truly won…

… Because he had me, that was all that mattered.


End file.
